The Aftermath
by Lady Kakirachan
Summary: When Wheatley returns from space via a stray meteorite, he realizes that there's something important he has to do before GLaDoS decides to punish him.
1. Prequeal

The Aftermath

Chapter 0: Prequel

Wheatley floated around the moon for the unknown time. He saw the area where Chell's portal was and 'sighed'. He missed the Earth and, he wouldn't admit it out loud, he even missed the giant AI that constantly bullied him with her words. He turned and looked at the Earth. Despite missing his home at Aperture, there was someone he missed much more.

"Space? So much space… gotta explore more space!" The core's eye squinted as the other core floated into his line of vision, spazzing out as usual. "Could you give it a rest, mate? I'm trying to have a moment to myself here," Wheatley said, rolling his eye.  
>"Gotta see more space! So much more space!" Wheatley groaned a bit, "I've told you. You can't see any more as long as you're orbiting me and I'm orbiting the bloody moon! Ugh, there're times I wish a meteorite would just hit one of us." Little did the core know, he was about to have his wish granted. Flying through space was a small meteorite being pulled towards the Earth.<br>"Spaaaaaaaaace!" Wheatley turned away from the other core in time to see the rock collide with him, knocking him out of the moon's gravitation field.  
>"Ow! Someone grab me!" he yelled, panicking and looking around, "For the love God, grab me!" Space ignored him, babbling on about space. Wheatley turned around and saw the Earth moving closer towards him. "I-I'm going back. Hey, Space! I'm going back to Earth!" Again, Space ignored him. Wheatley looked back at the blue planet and would have smiled if he could. He would finally be able to apologize to her… if she was still alive.<p>

"Okay. Provided I don't explode or get destroyed upon reentry, I should find a way to contact… her and then see if Chell's alive," Wheatley said to him, nodding, "How back can reentry be anyway?" He watched as the surface came closer into view. "So far so- ow. Ow! Hot! Hot! I'm on fire! Water! Someone put me out!" His outer shell started to glow, from a fierce red to white. As he flew through several clouds, he started to cool off. "Oh… that feels so good. I wonder what those things were." He looked around, noticing how dark it was. "It must be night time here in… wherever I'm landing." Looking towards the ground, he saw what he thought was discolored water. Again, he began to panic.  
>"No! Nonononono! I can't fall into water!" He closed his eyes and braced to be engulfed in water. He heard a crushing sound and felt himself bounce- that was never a good sign- though a wheat field. His shell, weakened from being heated and cooled, began cracking at the impact site as he tumbled. He could feel the cool air on his bare circuits, causing them to spark a bit. "Ow… not good. Not good. Not-" He rolled towards a single shed and through the door of it before falling down a long shaft.<p>

GLaDoS quietly watched her facility, finally bringing it back to its former glory before Wheatley had taken over.  
>"Finally. My facility is back to normal. And I'll never have to see that moron-" As if on cue, Wheatley landed in front of her from the elevator shaft. He slowly rolled in front of her, opening his cracked eye.<br>"…Oh joy. You're back," she said, trying to keep herself from instantly killing the core. Wheatley blinked and looked up at her.  
>"Oh! It's the pretty bird lady," he said, his voice sounding off-pitch, "Go on and fly me to the moon!" GLaDoS watched him and blinked. A pincer came down and carefully picked up the core. His bottom handlebar fell off as Wheatley looked at it.<br>"Was that a cube? Seems kinda puny if you ask me." The AI almost felt bad about the shape the personality core was in. He was in no fit shape to be punished.  
>"Do you know who I am?" GLaDoS asked. Wheatley looked at her again, his eye unable to stay still long enough to focus, "You're a faceless bird, that's what you are!"<br>"…It looks like you're in need of some serious repairs," she said, "Until your tiny body is repair, I guess I'll have to find something to put your brain into once that's repaired as well."  
>"You're funny, faceless bird lady."<br>"…." She carried him off to an area, hoping to repair fast enough so he wouldn't drive her crazy.


	2. Reunion

The Aftermath

Chapter 1: Reunion

"C-Chell! Forgive me! Please! I-I never meant to hurt you!" He saw her, portal gun in hand, glaring daggers at him. The room they were in was engulfed in flames. He tried to move closer to her.  
>"P-Please Chell… It was just a horrible mistake." She started to walk away.<br>"No. Nonono! Please, Chell. Give me a chance to make it up. I promise I won't try to kill you again." Chell stopped and looked at him.  
>"Hey. Moron. Can you hear me?" She spoke, but the voice…<p>

GLaDoS shook him a bit, "Wake up, you moron." Wheatley opened his eyes and blinked. GLaDoS eyed him carefully, "Say something." He groaned and blinked.  
>"Wait… wasn't I in space?" he asked. The AI moved back, "You crash landed into my facility. Consider yourself lucky I didn't drop your damaged body into an incinerator." Wheatley trembled, almost regretting the words leaving his mouth.<br>"What kept you from killing me?"  
>"Oh, I was wondering when you'd ask me that." A pincer came down and picked up a damaged core and held it in front of him. "Do you honestly think I would get any joy out of punishing you when the Earth did it for me?" Wheatley stared at the core before it finally hit him.<br>"I-If that's my body then, what am I-?" He looked down at himself. He saw arms, legs, feet and hands… all things Chell had.  
>"I tossed your personality and memories into an old android body I had lying around. It's not perfect, but it'll do until I repair your core body." Wheatley swung his legs over the table and slowly stood up. It felt odd to stand up on his own two feet, but he managed to do it without falling.<br>"Good. You can move on your own." Wheatley took a few uneasy steps and nodded, "Now I can go find her and-" GLaDoS started to laugh dryly, "Are you seriously considering looking for her? What makes you think you will find her?"  
>"I have to apologize to her… I need to let her know I'm sorry."<br>"I know she wouldn't want to see you after you almost murdered, but I'm going to let you find her and see for yourself. And after she crushes your hopes, I'll be more than happy to put you out of your misery." Wheatley gulped, "Y-You know where she is?" The AI turned a bit, as if looking for something, "Yes. She's been using the internet lately so it was very easy to track her down." Wheatley looked up at her, "Wait. Why are you keeping tabs on her anyway?"  
>"I don't have to explain my actions to you. Now, do you want to know where she is or not?" Wheatley quickly nodded, "Y-Yes." She turned to him, looming over him. He took a step back, backing into the table.<br>"This won't hurt a bit…" A pincher pinned him down, facing the table, "It's going to hurt a lot."

Elsewhere, Chell opened the door to a small one bedroom apartment, holding a brown paper bag in one arm. She walked in and closed the door with her foot. It was lightly decorated with mute green walls and matching carpet; there was a bookshelf filled with books that she'd already finished and started to re-read. She turned on the lights and set the bag on the table. Instead of her orange jumpsuit and white tank top, she wore a pale yellow blouse and white skirt that fell to her ankles. In place of the long-fall boots, she wore white flats. Her dark hair, no longer tied up, stopped short of her shoulders. It had been several months since GLaDoS had released her and she had found a small town at the end of the wheat field. To her surprise (and relief), they took her in and helped her out. They didn't even question where she was from, how she got there or even why she had a giant cube with her. After a while, she even got a part-time job working at a bookstore. It took her a while to get used to constant human contact and to get over her paranoia that this was just a dream, but she grew accustomed to life here as if she'd been here all her life.  
>She started putting up her groceries as someone knocked on the door. She stopped and looked. She wasn't expecting company.<br>"Hello? Anyone in there?" _That voice…_ She moved to the door and looked through the peephole. There was a tall man standing in front of the door. His hair was a dark sandy blonde and went in every direction. He had cerulean eyes that seem to glow behind his frameless glasses. He was wearing a white tank top. Chell thought about who it could be and mentally debated about letting him in.  
>"Hellooo? Are you going to open the door? At any time?" he knocked again. Despite better judgment, she opened the door.<br>"Ah! Oh my… y-you really are alive," he said. Chell took a step back.  
>"No no! Wait. Chell, it's me." She glared at the man, trying to piece together where she heard his voice before.<br>"You don't remember me? I understand… I did look different the last time we met, love. Still don't know who I am? I'm Wheatley," he said with a smile, "I-I came back to apolo-" The door slammed in his face, causing him to yelp in pain.


	3. Apology

Chapter 2: Apology

"Chell, open the door. I'm sorry!" he said, holding his nose, "I'm not going to hurt you again, I promise!" Chell glared at the door. How in the world did he find her, but more importantly, how did he get out of space? Wheatley put a hand on the door.  
>"I-I understand, love. You hate me for what I tried to do. I would hate me too… but just know that I'm so sorry for what I did. I never meant to try to hurt you." She looked at the door. She didn't hear anything that would tell her that he was lying and for her to stay away from him.<br>"If you don't want to see me again, that's fine too. I-I'll just go back and let… Her punish me." Chell blinked, remembering what GLaDoS had planned for him when he returned. She moved to the door and unlocked it before cracking it open slightly. Wheatley looked at her, looking as if he would break down crying at any moment. She opened the door more, still being careful. Wheatley blinked at her, "…"  
>"Hey, Chell! Are you ok?" Wheatley jumped as a young man ran up to the door and stood in front of Chell. His dark brown hair was combed back and his hazel eyes glared at Wheatley. Wheatley blinked at the man as Chell patted his shoulder. The man turned to her as she started moving her hands. Wheatley watched her hands. His glasses flashed bits of information to explain what she was doing. The guy nodded, "Okay. If he gives you any trouble, just let me know." He looked at Wheatley and walked away, bumping his shoulder. Chell sighed and grabbed Wheatley's wrist. He jumped a bit, "Oh god… Don't hurt me." She pulled him into her apartment and closed the door.<p>

Wheatley trembled and watched her, "Don't hurt me, Chell… well, you can if you want. Just don't kill me." She sat him in a chair and made him look at her. He looked up at her, shaking as her hands started moving again. The android blinked as his glasses flashed the information.  
>"Oh! You learned signed language! Brilliant. Now you can communicate," he said, smiling, "Hold on… I'm translating what you're saying…." She frowned and kept signing to him.<br>"Alright…. Um… 'how did you find me?' Oh. How did I find you?" he asked, "Well, when I returned from space, She told me where to find you." Chell froze up a bit. "I know, right? I didn't know or understand why She had been keeping tabs on you, but She uploaded the location to me and that's how I found you… Chell? Are you okay?" She nodded and signed again.  
>"Um… 'why are you here?' Why am I here? I wanted to apologize and possibly gain your forgiveness for being stupid and monstrous. I didn't mean to try to kill you. It was Her chassis that made me want to kill you. It was like I was frozen, watching a terrible, terrible movie." Chell glared at him a bit.<br>"So… do you forgive me?" Chell gave a soundless sigh and shook her head before signing again.  
>"… 'You have to earn it.' Earn your forgiveness? How do I do that?" Chell thought for a moment. It wasn't going to be easy. She smiled a bit and answered him. " 'You will stay here and I will watch you. One slip-up and you're out of here.' Alright. That's understandable, love," he said, "I'll be on my best behavior, promise." She nodded and went to get herself something to drink. Wheatley looked around a bit, "Wow. This place has a lot of stuff in it. You even have loads of books. Have you read them yet?" Chell walked back over to him with a glass of water and nodded, sitting on the loveseat. He got up and went to the bookshelf, looking over the books carefully.<br>"You have a great collection, love. You even have Machiavelli. It's my personal favorite. Do you mind if I read it?" Chell waved her hand dismissively, letting him know it was okay. He smiled and picked up the book before sitting down in his seat again. She looked over slightly and saw he held the book upside down.  
>"... Odd. Is this in Italian? I can't understand it at all." She smiled softly and leaned over, turning the book right side up for him. "Oh. That's much better. Thanks," he said, starting to read to himself. Maybe he would be true to his word and behave. Chell would just have to keep an eye on him and see.<p> 


	4. Daring

Chapter 3: Daring

Chell looked up at the clock on the wall and yawned. She didn't know it was so late already. Wheatley closed his book and smiled, "All done. Say, Chell? Do you have any more Machiavelli? I would love to rea-" He blinked, noticing her yawning. "Oh, are you tired?" She nodded and stood up, stretching.  
>"Right. A good night's rest is important," Wheatley said, "Oh. Do you have an empty outlet, by any chance?" Chell blinked at him and signed to him. '<em>Why do you need one?<em>' Wheatley stood up and reached behind his back, opening a small storage compartment to the right of the base of his spine and pulled out a small plug. "I have to recharge at night to keep functioning. I was told if I didn't, I would die!" She rolled her eyes. Wasn't that what they said about his flashlight and getting off his management rail? Chell pointed to an outlet by her computer before moving down the hall.  
>"W-Wait, Chell! Where are you going?" Wheatley followed her a bit, only to be stopped by Chell. '<em>I'm going to my bedroom. You stay out there<em>,' she signed, turning the light on to her room. Her bedroom was painted a light blue to resemble the sky; the carpet was a darker shade of blue. Her bed was covered in a fluffy blanket and two pillows. There was a vanity by the window that held a few pieces of make-up, a comb, brush and a mirror that was attached. Her Companion Cube, now cleaned up, sat next to her bed. Wheatley peeked inside and blinked, "Oh, it's like a relaxation chamber… but with a smaller bed." She shuddered, forcing the memory of that room out of her mind. She stepped into her room and turned to Wheatley. '_Goodnight._' She closed the door, leaving him alone.  
>"R-Right. Goodnight, love. See you in the morning." He sat by the computer and plugged himself in. He closed his eyes, slipping into sleep mode.<p>

Chell opened her eyes, still half asleep. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her. She hadn't felt like this since the time she took a nap while solving one of Wheatley's test chambers.  
>"…You really are alive, love… I'm glad…" Suddenly awake, she turned to the source of the sound. Two cerulean glowing eyes met her own pale blue eyes, less than two inches away from her. She reeled back, losing her balance and falling out of her bed, pulling her blanket with her.<br>"Oh! Chell, are you okay?" He stood up and leaned over the bed, looking at her. Chell glared up at him, her outfit now a white camisole and pink pajama bottoms. "You're not hurt, are you?" Wheatley asked before Chell stood up and turned on the lights. '_What are you doing in here?_' The android straightened up a bit, "W-Well, I finished recharging and woke up. I thought you might be lonely so I hacked the door and sat by your bed. I don't know how much company that cube of yours was, but I think I can do better." Chell looked at the door, seeing the doorknob was pulled out of the door. She sighed and glared at him again. '_This isn't helping me forgiving you._ ' He looked down, "O-Oh... I'm sorry, love. I-I'll just go back by the computer then." She nodded and picked up her blanket before rubbing her eyes and looking at her alarm clock. It was 35 past 7, time to get ready for work. Once Wheatley left her room, she changed clothes and combed out her hair. So much for getting a little extra sleep.

Wheatley sat on the couch and put his head in his hands. "Nice job, Wheatley… she'll never forgive you at this rate," he muttered to himself, "Maybe we should just give up and go back to Aperture." He groaned as someone knocked on the door. He blinked and got up. He waited for Chell to come out her room. When the person knocked a second time, he went to the door and carefully opened it.  
>"Morning Che-" The young man from yesterday stood there, glaring, "What the hell are you doing in Chell's apartment?"<br>"She invited me in," Wheatley said, glaring back, "Why are you here?"  
>"I'm here to walk her to work." Wheatley blinked as Chell knocked on the computer desk, getting their attention. "Oh. Morning, Chell. Ready to go?" the man asked as she nodded. '<em>I'm ready, Paul.<em>' She turned to Wheatley, '_I'll be back in about 4 hours. Stay here and don't mess with anything._' She turned on the TV and stepped out. Wheatley nodded, "A-Alright, love. See you soon." He waved and smiled.  
>Paul slid his hand onto Chell's shoulder and pulled her closer, "So, are you busy tonight, Chell? I got tickets for a concert and I think you'd enjoy it." Wheatley watched them and frowned, a strange feeling coming over him.<p> 


	5. Routine

Chapter 4: Routine

Chell walked into the bookstore and waved to her boss, a kind older woman that reminded Chell of someone's grandmother. "Good morning, you two," she said, "We have a busy day today. We have a new order of books that came in. Chell, do you want to take inventory?" Chell nodded and smiled. She enjoyed taking inventory; the quietness of the back room was a nice change from the cash register.  
>"Are those the Maci- something books, Ms. Jackson?" Paul asked, "Who read those anyway?" Chell tapped his shoulder then pointed to herself. "Oh. I forgot you read that stuff." She nodded and signed to her boss. "She wants to know if she can have two copies of all the Maci-something books." The older woman nodded, "Of course, dear." Chell smiled and went into the back of the book store. Paul sighed, "What does get out of reading those things? I can barely get past the first two pages." Ms. Jackson chuckled to herself, "The girl is bright. Reading must be a hobby of hers. Even in a world of technology like ours, there are those who still love the feeling of a good book." Paul nodded, going to the register, "I know I would love to get a good feel of her." She popped him in the back of his head. "Ow… I was joking, ya know," he said, rubbing his head and sighing. Ms. Jackson knew the boy was lying; the whole town knew about Paul's crush on Chell. He was always trying to get her to go out with him, but she would turn him down. She was sure Chell wasn't ready for a relationship and that Paul was trying too hard to get something he couldn't have.<br>In the back, Chell counted the books carefully and wrote it down before carrying ten at a time to the front to stack them on the shelves she had cleared yesterday for them. She smiled softly to herself, able to hear the faint melody of the classical music Wheatley once played in the facility. Even though her life was in danger and she hated that little blue core, the music calmed her nerves. She found herself moving along to the music in her head, stepping in time with it. Paul watched her from the corner of his eyes and wondered what she was dancing to. She finished stacking the books before going to make sure there were two left for her. She planned on giving one to Wheatley, if he behaves himself. Bribery was always an option, right? She put one of the books in her tote and opened the front cover of the other one. Grabbing a blue pen, she wrote a message inside of it and smiled. Hopefully he would be good enough to get this gift.

Wheatley sat on the couch, his eyes on the television set. It was a soap opera and he was utterly confused at what was going on. "…So, that bloke's father is dating his girlfriend's pregnant sister who's secretly married to that bloke's uncle?" he asked himself, scratching his head, "How the bloody hell do humans keep up with this? And why do they call this a soap opera? I haven't seen any soap or heard an opera sung this whole time." He got up and looked around a bit. He knew she said not touch anything, but curiosity (and boredom) got the best of him. He walked into the kitchen and looked around. Chell did have a lot of small machines in this area. He walked over to the toaster and examined it, his glasses feeding him information about it. He set it down and smirked, "Alright, you primitive machine. I'm your boss now. I want you to make Chell something nice for when she comes home." The toaster didn't move. Wheatley frowned and loomed over it, "I see being civil with you isn't working, so let's try it my way. Ugly. Fat, short, ugly machine. Your creator probably abandoned you because you're useless. How about that?" He moved closer, looking at it, "Well? Are you cooking something?" The lever he had accidently pressed down sprung up, making Wheatley jump back in fear and cover his head.  
>"Ahh! Don't hurt me!" He looked at it and laughed, "Ha! Was that the best you got?" He heard the door open and peeked around the corner.<br>"Come on, Chell," Paul said, "Are you sure you can't come to the concert with me?" She signed to him, _'I'm tired, Paul. Besides I have other things I need to do.' _He glared a bit, "It's that guy, isn't it? Is he forcing you to stay here? I can take him out if you need me to." Chell frowned, _'He has nothing to do with this. I just don't want to go to that concert with you.'_ Wheatley listened carefully and frowned. This guy just didn't get the message that Chell didn't want to go with him. Paul grabbed her hand, "Chell, listen to me. I don't like that guy around you." She pulled her hand back as Wheatley stormed over and pushed Paul away. "Listen to me, Paul… she doesn't like you and neither do I," Wheatley said, glaring, "And if she doesn't want to go with you, she doesn't have to. Now leave." Before Paul could get a word out, Wheatley slammed the door in his face. Chell pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. She wondered to herself why she seemed to attract the oddballs.


End file.
